Boomer shares his wisdom at youth football summit

MASSILLON, Ohio -- Boomer Esiason at NFL Youth Football Summit at Kent State University Stark campus.

By Jim Thomas

Boomer Esiason’s mother died when he was 7 years old.

His father, Norman Sr., worked hard so his family could eat. That left time for a teenaged Boomer to find mischief growing up in East Islip, N.J.

That’s when Sal Ciampi came into his life.

“He was the closest person to me (other than my father),” Esiason told the 100 high school coaches and youth football organizers at Thursday’s NFL Youth Football Summit at Kent State University Stark campus.

Esiason, a former NFL MVP and Super Bowl quarterback with the Cincinnati Bengals, talked about the responsibility of being a high school football coach.

“You are the makers of men,” he told the group. “You can change lives, just like Sal Ciampi changed mine.”

Esiason said Ciampi came into the picture at the perfect time.

“In the ninth grade, I was a 6-4, 170-pound quarterback,” said Esiason, a four-time Pro Bowler who played 14 years in the NFL, including stints with the Jets and Cardinals. He now is a television and radio broadcaster.

“(Ciampi) did everything he could possibly do to help me. He wanted me to be the best player I could possibly be.”

Ciampi stayed tough on Esiason and the rest of the East Islip players. Ciampi was Esiason’s homeroom teacher, and players had to bring their report cards in approval if they wanted on the field.

It wasn’t an easy sell. Ciampi was Academic All-America and team captain at Purdue in the 1960s.

“He held us all accountable,” Esiason said.

Ciampi was tough on his star. Esiason remembers getting cut down at film meetings for running the football when the gangly left-hander was forced to scramble.

“When I look back, that was pretty negative,” Esiason said. “But it made me look pretty strong in the eyes of my teammates. And it kept me in line.”

The University of Maryland was the only college that offered Esiason a scholarship. It came, Esiason said, all because of Ciampi.

Unknown at the time to Esiason, Ciampi sent thousands of letters and lots of game film to a friend on the Maryland coaching staff.

“Sal is the one guy who basically believed in me,” Esiason said.

Esiason learned respect, discipline and responsibility from his high school coach.

“He said it’s a privilege to play (football), and you have to earn that privilege.”

Esiason said Ciampi’s motto was one for all and all for one. There were no star players at East Islip.

“I learned that at 15,” Esiason said. “And I believe it to this day at 46.”

Esiason sees how much high school coaches influence players today. His son Gunnar is a 16-year-old sophomore who has cystic fibrosis, an inherited chronic disease that affects the lungs and digestive system.

“Two years ago, Gunnar said he was going out for football,” Esiason said. “I couldn’t have been more proud of him.”

A third-string quarterback at a small private school, Gunnar got into one play last season.

“My first time watching, he fumbled the snap and got piled on by two guys,” Boomer said. “When he got up, he was dirty, a mess. For me, as a dad, it was (great).”

That’s when coaching is about more than wins and losses -- instead how it changes lives.

New Gig for Boomer

Esiason also said Thursday that he is scheduled to take over the morning radio show previously hosted by Don Imus.

The show on WFAN will be called “Boomer in the Morning.”

Imus’ show was canceled in June after his derogatory remarks toward the Rutgers University women’s basketball team. Imus has since sued CBS, which owns WFAN.

Esiason also appears on “NFL Today” on CBS, “The Boomer Esiason Show” on Madison Square Garden Network and works for CBS Sports/Westwood One as an NFL analyst.